[MUD-Dev] MUD timeline

[J C Lawrence]

On Tue, 14 Mar 2000 12:22:08 -0500 
Derek Snider <derek at idirect.com> wrote:

> BTW... SMAUG was released at the end of 1996... which is a
> significant addition because a few Everquest developers/designers
> were players on Realms of Despair (the SMAUG development MUD) and
> I have information from an inside contact at EQ that they
> definately took a lot of ideas from SMAUG.

A rather belittling yet not inaccurate view is that EQ is DIKU
warmed over with a graphical interface.  The gameplay, command set,
base functionality, and design are a pretty accurate copy of a
standard, stock, DIKU -- or that Smaug is descended from DIKU:

  http://www.kanga.nu/cgi-bin/mud_tree.cgi?Cascade

The problem with that view is that it ignores the various things
that EQ did and are doing that were new and interesting (see
previous threads and some of the discussions at the dinner), or that
DIKU, for all the things it did "wrong", it also did a great many
things very right -- there are very good reasons for its popularity
after all.

--
J C Lawrence                                 Home: claw at kanga.nu
----------(*)                              Other: coder at kanga.nu
--=| A man is as sane as he is dangerous to his environment |=--


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